📄 social_science

President Donald Trump's Communication paradox: A case study on the U.S. -Vietnam Comprehensive Partnership

This qualitative study argues that despite President Trump's initially adversarial rhetoric on trade, his direct and unorthodox communication style paradoxically facilitated the pragmatic strengthening of the U.S.–Vietnam Comprehensive Partnership, illustrating the complex interplay between populist discourse and bilateral diplomatic outcomes.

Minh Duc Dang, Bich Thuan Nguyen, Thanh Vinh Trinh, Thanh Ha Vu2026-07-29
📄 social_science

Tasting Beautifully, Transforming Collectively: The Global-Local Dynamics of Life Aesthetics and Culinary Culture Change in Urban China

This study demonstrates that the aestheticization of culinary practices in urban China serves as a transformative mechanism for sustainable development, where "glocal" fusion cuisines and the integration of ethical concerns with sensory pleasure enable everyday eating to reshape cultural identities and drive societal transitions toward sustainability.

Yuan Zhuang, Mengyao Guo, Ze gao2026-07-29
📄 social_science

Legislative pathways as dissemination strategies: A protocol for examining psychedelics reform speed, content, and cross-state diffusion

This study protocol outlines a qualitative multiple case study using the EPIS framework and legal mapping to systematically analyze how three distinct legislative pathways influence the speed, content, and cross-state diffusion of U.S. psychedelic reform, with a specific focus on the role of task forces as policy learning mechanisms.

Ziming Wang, James Daily, Danielle R. Adams2026-07-28
📄 social_science

Is It Okay to Reintegrate Institutionalised Orphan Students into Families? Teachers’ Perceptions in Urban Secondary Schools, Tanzania

This qualitative study of teachers in urban Tanzanian secondary schools reveals that while reintegration offers significant psychosocial and cultural benefits for institutionalized orphans, educators perceive substantial challenges such as family absence and economic hardship, leading them to recommend delaying reintegration until after graduation alongside stricter regulatory frameworks.

Victor Vedasto, Joyce Mkongo2026-07-28
📄 social_science

An Experimental Study of Persuasive Design’s Effects on Children’s In-App Choices and Play

This experimental study of 554 children demonstrates that while persuasive design features like character recommendations effectively influence in-app choices, their impact varies significantly by feature type, with locked options often deterring engagement and combined effects showing that deterrence can outweigh persuasion.

Daniel Johnson, Steven Howard, Sumudu Mallawaarachchi, Cody Phillips, Sonia White, Lisa Kervin, Stephanie Tobin2026-07-28
📄 social_science

Hedging under siege: Rethinking Vietnam's small-state agency and coercive erosion in the South China Sea

This paper argues that Vietnam's hedging strategy in the South China Sea is eroding not merely due to external great-power pressure, but through a structural feedback loop where defensive measures trigger coercive responses that compress ambiguity, ultimately forcing smaller states toward de facto alignment as ambiguity-based strategies become unviable.

Roksana Islam Sujana, Md Imran Hosen2026-07-28